Moving On
by Hedwig1622
Summary: This a Yogscast one-shot that takes place after the battle with Israphel. But, it went horribly wrong - Xephos died in the fight. Honeydew must try to cope with the loss and try to move on.


**Moving On**

The sun was just beginning to set behind a blocky hill as Honeydew gazed at the ruins of the Yogcave. Mobs would soon be spawning and attack Honeydew in never-ending waves.

_Good, let them come, _the dwarf though bitterly. After all, he needed something to distract him from…

The mass of flames had long been extinguished from the Yogcave, but the same could not be said about the pain that resided in Honeydew's heart. The dwarf could still remember his first day in this new world that he had come to admire. After all, this is the world where he made not only a friend, but a brother.

A brother who could put up with his love of explosions. A brother who never failed to make him smile. A brother who accepted him for the crazy dwarf he was. A brother who had left Honeydew alone to face the cruelty of the world…

Only weeks had passed since the spaceman had left Honeydew….

**-Flashback-**

_The endless battles and hardships had led to this moment. Skylord Lysander, Knight Peculiar, the Carnivale de Banjo, and many brave Minecraftian warriors marched toward the battlefield led by Xephos and Honeydew. As they continued forwards, Honeydew nor Xephos could fight the horrific feeling that many would die today._

_Suddenly, a shadowy mass broke the horizon. A horde of creepers, skeletal archers, zombie pigmen, and many more endless waves of mobs crept towards Honeydew's and Xephos's warriors. Worst of all, standing in the front line, was the pale-faced man who had ruined the lives of countless Minecraftians._

_Several seconds of painful silence was spent as Honeydew and Xephos observed their enemy. The two heroes glanced back at their army and were met by looks of determination and vengeance._

"_What are we doing?" Xephos asked._

"_Xephos…we're going…to save…the world!" Honeydew answered. And with that, the pair charged into battle followed by their loyal followers. _

_Hours seemed to pass as Xephos and Honeydew slayed an assortment of mobs. Whenever one was slayed, however, three more seemed to merely replace it. In the bloodbath, each had lost their chest plate and were coated in fresh blood. They could not go on like this._

"_We need to get to Israphel!" Xephos said. "He keeps summoning more!"_

"_Where is he!?" Honeydew exclaimed. The answer came in a raspy, snakelike tone._

_**Looking for me, heroes?**__The ground underneath the heroes began to shake. Spaceman and dwarf were sent airborne in a burst of rubble. Honeydew tumbled through the air and struggled to not land on his neck. With an uncharacteristic surge of agility, Honeydew managed to land in a summersault. The dwarf lay there for a few moments struggling to breathe. The world spun around in a twisted haze, but Honeydew knew he had to get up._

_With ragged breaths, Honeydew got to his feet._

"_Xephos!" the distressed dwarf yelled. No answer returned. A thick layer of smoke submerged the dwarf as he ran blindly in every direction. _

"_XEPHOS!" Madness consumed Honeydew as he searched for his friend. The smoke remained and seemed to muddle his mind. Any minute now, Xephos would emerge from the smoke and rejoin him…_

_**Not so brave without your friend…**__ Israphel hissed. Honeydew whirled around and tried to find the source of the voice. _

"_WHERE IS HE YOU BUGGER!" Honeydew yelled, whirling around._

_**That is not important**__ Israphel snarled. __**You should be more concerned for your own safety, dwarf.**__ Two red eyes appeared through the midst, petrifying Honeydew. The dwarf stood there helpless, willing himself to move. The act was pointless though: it was if every bone in his body had frozen._

_**Minecraftia shall be mine!**__ Honeydew just had enough time to think one last thought before he saw the glimpse of a long sword flash through the air._

I'm so sorry Xephos…

_One minute he was staring death in the eyes, and the next something collided with him. The dwarf was sent tumbling towards the ground._

_**You fool!**__That was when Honeydew realized who he was speaking to. The dwarf shot his head towards the spot where he had been only moments ago._

_The sword that threatened to end his life was caked in fresh blood and in the hands of a dying soldier. Honeydew sprinted over to the man and kneeled over. A gaping wound, so close to the heart, was covered in a steady flow of blood. As Honeydew removed the helmet of the man, he thought he had prepared for the worst….how wrong he was._

_It was Xephos._

_Breathing heavily and struggling to maintain focus, the spaceman muttered something unintelligible._

"_It's going to be okay!" Honeydew said, more trying to convince himself then Xephos. "Stay with me!"_

_**Well, I guess that kill was not a complete waste. **__Anger boiled inside Honeydew as he turned towards the voice. _

_He was sick of this man ruining his life as if he was a just a pawn in a sick game. Thanks to this man, his home was gone…countless were dead…and the life was slowly eking out of his friend. For ages, Honeydew had spent all his energy on escaping the pale-faced man._

_Not anymore._

_Honeydew pursued Israphel with speed that seemed impossible. Surprise flashed through those red eyes as he barely dodged the dwarf's blade. An energy that the dwarf had never experienced before came in an overwhelming flow. _

_Israphel pulled out a bow and arrow and sent an arrow at the dwarf's heart. With a swift duck and a sprint towards the demon, Honeydew managed to slash at Israphel's arm. He was rewarded with a satisfying snarl. Israphel strung another arrow with no success._

_Dodging…striking…dodging…striking. The dwarf continued this process until he could see Israphel's energy slowly draining. Finally, the flow of arrows came to a halt. Honeydew took his chance and charged. The speed at which he ran was unexplainable. In what seemed like half a second, the enraged dwarf collided with the villain and pinned him to the ground with a powerful stomp._

_An expression that could only be described as shock crossed Israphel's face as he realized, for the first time in his life, he was defenseless against a mightier power. _

_A sword through the heart was the end of the pale-faced man._

_Shock, confusion, and then full-fledged panic crossed Honeydew's mind as reeled over what had just happened. The dwarf ran to his dying friend who's breathing had slowed significantly and took in every breath as if it were infected by poison. _

_Xephos still weakly clutched the blade that had inflicted his horrid wound, its blood matching the puddle that surrounded his body. This image sent Honeydew into frenzy…Xephos could not be saved. _

"_You…you…can't...leave me!" Honeydew sobbed. "This is all my fault…"_

_Slowly, Xephos replied with tears welling in his eyes._

"_No," he said. "You're…a…hero."_

_Honeydew grasped Xephos's hand and said with a shaky voice, "So are you. Remember that. I mean, together we-we…" the tears raced down Honeydew's face with no intention of slowing._

_A small smile played across Xephos's lips._

"_Honeydew, we saved the world."_

_The spaceman's eyes fluttered and focused on the dwarf's face for the last time. Still holding Xephos's hand, Honeydew collapsed in a crying heap on to of Xephos's chest. Several moments of horrible sadness consumed the dwarf until he felt a gentle hand on his shoulder._

"_He will be remembered," Knight Peculiar promised. "A person like that is hard to forget, dwarf."_

**-End of Flashback-**

The full force of unbearable sadness hit Honeydew as he remembered that his brother was dead…because of him.

_That could have been me! Why couldn't it have been me?!_

On more than one occasion, Honeydew had considered taking his own life. The first time came after Xephos's funeral. Everybody shared touching stories about the spaceman. That was when Honeydew realized that Xephos would never be able to touch anybody's heart again.

If it were not for the constant support of Knight Peculiar and Skylord Lysander, the dwarf would be rejoined with his lost brother by now. But, that little voice inside his head said it would not be that easy. As Honeydew attempted to make sense of his muddled thoughts, he heard footsteps behind him.

In the blink of an eye, Honeydew pulled out his pick-axe and whirled around to face the stranger.

It was Knight Peculiar, who was looking more haggard than ever.

"Hello," Peculiar ventured using a soft tone. People have been talking to Honeydew as if he were a time bomb about to explode without any warning.

The dwarf mumbled a greeting and sat in his earlier position. To his dismay, Knight Peculiar took a seat beside him.

"I know how you feel," Knight Peculiar said. "When Daisy was gone…it was unbearable." Honeydew gave no sign that he had heard him.

_Well, at least Daisy's alive._

Knight Peculiar continued, "I used to talk to her. I know that sounds foolish, but it made me feel better. You seem to be quite distance from everybody and, take it from me; it hurts not having anybody to talk to."

Honeydew wanted to deny all this, but he knew he missed the company of others. But whenever he talked, all he could think about was Xephos laughing his awkward laugh whenever he said something that was even remotely funny. Having a conversation without Xephos at his side was a foreign idea...

"I think I'm going to take a walk," Honeydew said after a few moments of silence. The dwarf stood and followed the path that led to Minstral City. As Honeydew walked on, he could feel Peculiar's eyes piercing his back.

Torches lined the path keeping the mobs at bay. The familiar path just brought on more sorrow as Honeydew realized this was the path that led him and Xephos to Knight Peculiar…the first step towards the long journey dedicated to bringing down Israphel.

Ten minutes later, Honeydew had arrived at the quite town; everybody would surely be in bed at this hour. The gate to the cemetery was eerily lit by redstone torches to symbolize all the lives that had ended during the war.

The dwarf reached the graves that he and Xephos had laughed about. The only difference now was that one of them was occupied. Honeydew kneeled next to the grave and read the inscription that he had engraved himself.

_Xephos _

_A spaceman_

_Hero of Minecraftia_

_A brother_

"_To the well-organized mind, death is but the next great adventure."_

Honeydew struggled to swallow his sobs as he addressed the moon above him.

"Xephos, I don't know if you can hear me…but I just need somebody to talk to. Life isn't the same without you. I wish I could join you, but I know you wouldn't want that. And…and…you deserve to have whatever you want. I know you would want me to move one, but I just can't! Every day is just bloody awful! Every…everything…reminds me…of you! Peculiar and Lysander have been doing everything they can. I…I...guess I should be grateful that they haven't abandoned me. You must be happy wherever you are, because I haven't seen you. That's supposed to be good, even though I would give anything to see you again."

The tears that threatened to overflow came down in an overwhelming stream. Honeydew never let Xephos know how much he meant to him…now he would never have the chance.

"I miss your corny laugh. I miss your torches. I miss your stupid precautions. I miss you, spaceman."

The dwarf just sat there for a couple minutes wallowing in his pain. Sob upon sob wracked his body until he was too weak to move. Strangely though, Honeydew felt better than he had since Xephos's death. For the first time, he felt a weight lift of his soldier.

Little did the dwarf know that he was being watched.

Behind a thick tree, stood a man who seemed to blend in with his surroundings. He knew now that the dwarf would gradually move on. He had support and felt he had somebody he could share his feelings with. Honeydew would be fine and peace could finally be found.

"I miss you, dwarf," Xephos whispered. He was finally able to move on himself.


End file.
